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(Happy Monday! Today’s post is from Sande Smith, our communications expert.)

The movie Avatar has set off quite a buzz.

For some religious conservatives, it’s a blasphemous film that advocates the worship of nature. For some progressives, it’s a film that tells the same old story of racism and colonial domination.

Despite any shortcomings, I am still deeply touched by the film – its messages and its imagery. Having seen the film a second time, one of the messages that resonates most profoundly for me is the power of collective intelligence.

When the Nav’i, the people of the planet Pandora, first meet the human, Jake Sully, the Nav’i tell him that his people are ignorant, and unwilling to learn. They say they have not been able to teach his people because you cannot fill a cup that is already full.

Sully answers that anyone will attest that his cup is empty, because he’s never been a smart man. He’s not a scientist; rather he’s a member of the “Jarhead clan” – a warrior. And he’s a broken warrior at that. A man who’s entire identity has been shattered by the loss of his legs through war. Broken, he is ready to learn a new philosophy, and a new way of being.

What heals Sully is opening up to a different kind of intelligence – one that is informed by interconnectedness. The Nav’i can physically link in to the creatures and the trees of their planet, and literally upload and download memories, sensations and insight from all living beings, past and present.

They have access to a shared pool of meaning, a phrase coined by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Greeny, Al Switzler and Ron McMillan, authors of Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When the Stakes are High.

While researching why some people are more effective influencers than others, the authors found that the super-influencers excelled at managing and facilitating high-stake conversations. These are conversations where big decisions are being discussed and made: salary changes, whether or not to move a facility, a promotion, misunderstandings between staff, giving a boss feedback on how to do her job more effectively, asking a friend to repay a loan.

They found that the people who excel in holding these crucial conversations are able to find a way to get all of the relevant information (from themselves and others) out into the open. “At the core of every successful conversation lies the free flow of relevant information. People openly and honestly express their opinions, share their feelings, and articulate their theories. They willingly and capably share their views, even when their ideas are controversial or unpopular.”

Of course, that’s the key to true collaboration and connection. If I believe that I have all the relevant information, then I feel connected, trusted, part of the whole. The group mind is nourished and the best decisions can be made by drawing upon the pool of shared meaning.

The authors explain that in a very real sense, the pool of shared meaning is a measure of the group’s IQ. The larger the shared pool, the smarter the decisions. And even though it may seem excessive to have so many people involved in decision-making, when people openly and freely share ideas, the increased time investment pays off because of vastly improved decisions and greater buy-in.

The film Avatar invites us to imagine what it could be like – a community that has access to and is enriched by the knowledge that has been accumulated and cherished over generations. Any person can tap in and be simultaneously fed by and contribute to the whole.

What are you doing to make it safe for people to share their experiences, concerns, their dreams and vision? How are you contributing to the development of collective intelligence in your own family, your organization, or community?